SOB Officers Arrest Man For Illegal Gun, Drug Possession On East End of St. Thomas

John McCarthyPosted oninAt VIFreep, Breaking News, Crime News, Police News, St. Thomas News

CHARLOTTE AMALIE — Police doing traffic enforcement on the East End of St. Thomas arrested a man on illegal gun and drugs possession charges on Saturday night, authorities said.

Ronald A. Smith, 39, of St. Thomas, was arrested at 9:00 p.m. Saturday and charged with possession of an unlicensed firearm with an obliterated serial number and possession of illegal narcotics with intent to distribute, the Virgin Islands Police Department said.

VIPD mugshot of Ronald A. Smith, 39, of St. Thomas.

Bail for Smith was set at $150,000.00. Unable to post bail, he was turned over to custody of the Bureau of Corrections pending an advice-of-rights hearing.

Members of the Special Operations Bureau were conducting traffic enforcement while working Operation Rewind on Emile Francis Memorial Drive on Saturday night, according to the VIPD.

John McCarthy

John F. McCarthy is a veteran journalist in the Caribbean, writing from the "Decision Space" where survival meets the surreal. His reporting steel was tempered by a lineage of legendary editors and broadcasters, including Ed Wynn Brant (The Bomb), Owen Eschenroder (Ann Arbor News), Lynelle Emanuel (BVI Beacon), and Charles Thanas (WSVI-TV). Alongside longtime colleague Kenneth C. "Casey" Clark, McCarthy has navigated the front lines of the territory’s history—from the 1997 volcanic "snow" to every major hurricane since Hugo. Known for leaning out of doorless helicopters to capture the "money shot," McCarthy now edits the V.I. Free Press, providing the essential link between the island's colonial past and its SpaceX future.